Chapter 170: Jiang Yuan's Self-Reproach

Shen Gongbao led Jiang Yuan and Bai Ze to the military tent where Li Jing was stationed.

In truth, Jiang Yuan could have found the place without Shen Gongbao acting as a guide.

To be precise, it was not Jiang Yuan who could locate it, but Bai Ze, who could trace the destination using his divine powers.

Inside Li Jing's tent at that moment, all four members of the family were gathered. If Nezha had been present as well, the family of five would have been complete.

Seeing this scene, Jiang Yuan felt an even deeper sense of guilt toward Li Jing and his wife.

"Your Majesty, would you like this humble Daoist to go in and announce your arrival?" Shen Gongbao volunteered.

Jiang Yuan raised a hand to stop him, offering a faint smile. "There is no need. I wish to hear what they are discussing at the moment."

Though Jiang Yuan knew this behavior was somewhat improper, he simply wanted to observe the current living state of the four-person family without Nezha.

After all, the news he was about to bring them was hardly pleasant.

Bai Ze remained as silent as ever, and Shen Gongbao stood quietly in place.

With one being a Da Luo Golden Immortal, another a Hunyuan Golden Immortal, and the third a Semi-Sage, remaining undetected by Li Jing and his family posed absolutely no difficulty.

Jiang Yuan listened quietly to their conversation from outside.

Yin Shiniang looked at Li Jing with a worried expression and asked, "We haven't seen Nezha for so long. Could something have happened to him?"

Hearing this, Jiang Yuan felt a sharp jolt in his heart. Was this a woman's intuition? It was exceptionally accurate, especially concerning her own child.

Although Li Jing felt a quiet anxiety of his own, he knew he must not simply agree with his wife's fears at such a moment.

Otherwise, Yin Shiniang would undoubtedly grow even more worried.

"My dear, you need not worry. Nezha is by the King's side, so how could any misfortune befall him?" Li Jing comforted.

These words finally allowed Yin Shiniang to feel a slight sense of relief.

"I truly hope so."

"You are not unfamiliar with Nezha's temperament. Even staying by the King's side, he might not be entirely safe," Yin Shiniang said, still hesitant.

Hearing this, Li Jing seemed blocked for words and said nothing further.

Jiang Yuan, listening outside, felt deeply perplexed. Could it be that the couple was also aware of certain truths regarding Nezha?

"Father, Mother, what has actually happened to Nezha?" Jinzha asked with a hint of tension.

Although Nezha was usually mischievous and often caused trouble for their parents to their annoyance, he was, after all, the younger brother, and as the eldest, Jinzha felt he should pay closer attention.

"It does no good for you two brothers to know of these matters. You need only focus on serving the Great Shang diligently," Li Jing instructed.

"The King has not treated our Li family poorly."

"Your son understands," Jinzha and Muzha replied respectfully.

Within the household, Li Jing held immense authority, especially over his three sons, fully living up to the role of a stern father.

Hearing Li Jing reprimand Jinzha and Muzha in this manner left a bitter taste in Jiang Yuan's heart.

Nezha's whereabouts were still unknown, yet Li Jing still dared to entrust his other two sons to the Great Shang.

Jiang Yuan turned his head away with a sense of unbearable reluctance, a bottomless well of guilt churning within him.

"Your Majesty, shall we continue listening?" Shen Gongbao asked in confusion.

Jiang Yuan gave a faint, slow shake of his head. "No need. Go inside and announce my presence."

He felt he could not bear to listen any longer; the more he heard, the harder it would be to break the news about Nezha to them.

Shen Gongbao silently walked into the tent.

Upon seeing Shen Gongbao, Li Jing and his wife immediately stepped forward to salute.

"Your humble subordinate Li Jing greets the National Master. I was unaware of the National Master's esteemed arrival and failed to welcome you from afar. I hope the National Master will forgive this offense."

Shen Gongbao waved his hand with a smile. "General Li, trust has been well since we last met. I have come here on the King's orders to announce his arrival."

"The King has come as well?" Li Jing asked with mild surprise.

"I heard that General Li specially led a large army from Chentangguan to participate in the campaign, and your loyalty is evident for all to see. Therefore, I specifically came to visit the General," Jiang Yuan said with a faint smile.

Just as Li Jing finished speaking, Jiang Yuan walked in from outside the tent, looking at Li Jing with a gentle smile.

Upon seeing Jiang Yuan, Li Jing hurriedly bowed in salute. "Your subject Li Jing pays respects to Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty flatters me with those words. Li is, after all, a martial general of the Great Shang. Now that rebellious subjects are causing chaos, defending the ruler is the proper duty of ministers like us."

Jiang Yuan nodded with satisfaction, though his inner guilt only grew a fraction heavier.

Damn it, if he had known, he should have kept Nezha by his side at all times and never let him run around blindly.

When Yin Shiniang saw Jiang Yuan, she felt an initial surge of joy, her gaze immediately shifting past Jiang Yuan to search for Nezha's figure.

After all, Nezha had been following the King, and having not seen him for so long, Yin Shiniang was naturally filled with anticipation.

Scanning the surroundings and finding no trace of Nezha, a sense of disappointment washed over her. She spoke directly to Jiang Yuan, abandoning all formalities.

"Dare I ask Your Majesty, where is Nezha now?"

"Was it not said that Nezha has recently been by Your Majesty's side all this time?"

As Nezha's mother, Yin Shiniang could no longer care about the rigid etiquettes between monarch and subject.

She only knew that she had not seen Nezha for a very long time, and as a mother, she ached for her son.

"This..." Jiang Yuan was momentarily left speechless.

He did not know what appropriate words to say.

Seeing Jiang Yuan's hesitation, Yin Shiniang felt her heart drop sharply—it seemed her worst fears were about to come true!

"Your Majesty... what on earth has happened to Nezha? Please tell me directly," Yin Shiniang pleaded, her eyes beginning to moisten.

Finding it difficult to face Yin Shiniang directly, Jiang Yuan turned his gaze to Li Jing. "Does the General know that a Hunyuan Golden Immortal broke into the Great Shang military camp some days ago?"

Li Jing nodded silently. "I have heard a little about it."

With such a major event occurring in the Great Shang camp, it was impossible for him to be completely unaware.

It was just that those truly privy to the matter always seemed to skirt around the subject when speaking to him.

As if deliberately trying to keep the truth from him.

Looking at Li Jing's somewhat complex expression, Jiang Yuan knew the man had undoubtedly guessed something.

"That Hunyuan Golden Immortal was Nezha's master, Master Taiyi," Jiang Yuan stated the fact calmly.

Upon hearing this, Yin Shiniang felt as though a heavy stone had crashed onto her chest.

She found herself suddenly unable to catch her breath; if it was Master Taiyi, then perhaps she truly might never see Nezha again in this lifetime.

"Taiyi took Nezha away?" Li Jing asked directly.

This was hardly a guess; he seemed to have anticipated this outcome long ago.

Deciding to conceal nothing further, Jiang Yuan looked at Li Jing, nodded, and explained, "When I learned of this matter, I immediately traveled to the Golden Light Cave on Mount Qianyuan."

"Then where is Nezha?" Yin Shiniang's eyes lit up.

A spark of hope ignited in her heart; she thought that since the King had gone personally, Nezha should surely be recoverable, right?

Who would have thought Jiang Yuan would shake his head once more. "By the time I reached the Golden Light Cave, I learned that Nezha had long since ceased to be with Master Taiyi."

"He was taken away by Saint Nuwa's senior—no, by Primeval Lord of Heaven."

Hearing this, Yin Shiniang's body swayed unsteadily, and Jinzha and Muzha rushed forward to support their mother.

She had not expected the blow of this news to hit Yin Shiniang with such devastating force.

Although Li Jing looked deeply disappointed as well, he did not appear overly surprised, which left Jiang Yuan rather puzzled.

Li Jing was certainly not a man of stone and iron.

"It seems General Li had anticipated this scene long ago?" Jiang Yuan asked out of curiosity.

Li Jing nodded calmly. "From the very day Nezha was taken away by Master Taiyi—or perhaps even much earlier—I had already foreseen this moment."

"Could you explain this to me?" Jiang Yuan asked, intrigued.

"Your Majesty should also know that my wife carried him in her womb for three years before giving birth, correct?" Li Jing asked.

"That much I have indeed heard," Jiang Yuan answered truthfully.

"After my wife had been pregnant for over a year, I began to feel something was amiss, so I traveled to the Eight Treasures Luminous Cave to consult my master."

"Who is the General's master?"

This was something Jiang Yuan had never really paid attention to. Li Jing's master? That genuinely touched upon a blind spot in his knowledge.

"Master Du'e. Has Your Majesty ever heard of him?" Li Jing inquired.

Hearing the name, Jiang Yuan finally felt a sense of familiarity.

He vaguely remembered this person being quite a formidable figure. "Do you happen to have a junior fellow apprentice named Zheng Lun?"

The Zheng Lun Jiang Yuan mentioned was precisely one of the two Generals of Heng and Ha.

The two breaths within the orifices taught to Zheng Lun by Master Du'e allowed him to make a sound like a bell with a single grunt and emit two streams of white light to suck away a person's soul.

He wondered where Zheng Lun was now, seeing as Zheng Lun ought naturally to be a military commander under the Great Shang.

The timeline of this world had been altered far too drastically.

Hearing this question, Li Jing asked with surprise, "How does Your Majesty know that I have a junior brother?"

"Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed," Jiang Yuan said with a mysterious smile.

"General Li, do tell me more about Nezha. I wish to gather as much information about him as possible."

"Only then can I deduce what the Primeval Lord of Heaven's true purpose was in taking Nezha away."

Regarding Nezha, Jiang Yuan still cared deeply.

Li Jing nodded and began to recount, looking at Jiang Yuan as he answered, "When I went to the Eight Treasures Luminous Cave and found my master, he seemed to have known long beforehand that I would come."

"Before I could even voice my doubts, my master asked me if I had come because of matters concerning my third son."

"Master Du'e possesses such uncanny foresight?" Jiang Yuan was somewhat surprised.

With that, Jiang Yuan turned to look at Bai Ze. Could it be that Master Du'e also possessed the ability to know all things in the universe?

Bai Ze indicated that he was not entirely certain either; Master Du'e's strength should not be underestimated, as he himself was unable to calculate information concerning him.

"As to that, Li is not entirely clear. At the time, my master told me that this child was no longer an ordinary child, and his future encounters were destined to be extraordinary."

"He said Nezha would eventually join the Chan Sect, and that his very birth was due to the Chan Sect. Even the name 'Nezha' was given by my master."

"My master also warned me that one day Nezha might even destroy this world with his own hands. From that moment on, I knew Nezha's origins could not be simple. Back when his mother was pregnant with him, she dreamed of a streak of light crashing into her belly."

"Followed by a three-year pregnancy. Regarding Nezha's current plight, I had actually prepared myself for it long ago," Li Jing explained.

Jiang Yuan was momentarily stunned. The information Li Jing knew was remarkably similar to what he himself was aware of.

It was just that Li Jing did not know his original child was indistinguishable from being dead, a cruel truth Jiang Yuan chose not to impart.

Since Nezha still acknowledged them as parents, the absolute truth of that matter no longer mattered much.

The most crucial question was: what else did Master Du'e know?

Jiang Yuan had a gut feeling that Master Du'e certainly knew far more than Master Taiyi did.

Yet this fellow was as enigmatic as the old Bai Ze, and Jiang Yuan's understanding of him was far too limited.

"In the end, it was due to my own carelessness. I never imagined Nezha would hold such immense importance to the Chan Sect," Jiang Yuan reproached himself once more.

What he spoke was the truth; had it not been for this, Nezha might still have remained by his side.